Chapter10- The Fated Couple's Future: The Mystifying Lovers~

The night was young, but that didn't matter because as soon as they blinked, it began to age. Aki filled Asano in on their plan hours ago, so all that was left to do was wait. Wait for the right time to move, to breathe, and to say what could be their final words to each other.

An hour is all they had left. That's when they decided would be the time that they left. Nagisa was more on edge than anybody else and Karma picked up on this. He got up off the floor where they were seated and pulled Nagisa up with him and headed back into his room.

"Karma?" Nagisa asked in a shrill voice.

Karma pulled him into a hug. "You don't have to go through with this…"

"I need to…" Nagisa sighed into Karma's chest.

Those words made Karma heart lurch. Nagisa would be going up against someone that he didn't know well. Someone that he was able to beat up, but when he fired an actual gun at the same person, they were able to dodge it with ease. Karma wasn't sure what the outcome would be tonight, but he knew that he had to stand by Nagisa's side and decisions no matter what.

Nagisa entered the Sohma estate and headed towards Akito's room. He tried to walk quietly given the surrounding silence and the soft murmurs of the crickets and rustling tree leaves outside. It was such a calming setting; too bad that there was a family full of chaos and torment lurking within it all.

He stopped in front of his door and gently tapped on it. He didn't wait for a reply, sliding open the door and walking in. Akito's room was always dark and Nagisa always had a sneaking suspicion that someone or something lurked in the shadows of his room. That someone often being Akito himself.

It was no surprise when Akito came stalking out of the shadows of the corner of his room. Even though he wasn't taken by surprise, Nagisa nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of Akito.

"Nagisa? What is this...?"

"You should know…you did take my dog…you broke into Karma's apartment…and you made me realize that I am truly meant to be with you…" his voice went from something of a voice that was slightly raised to a voice that was almost a whisper. Nagisa spoke carefully and he didn't let his act falter. Akito knew Nagisa and he'd never think for a second that he'd try anything. He had this.

Akito raised an eyebrow. "What happened to that red head…?"

"I got rid of him…we got into this really bad argument and…I just couldn't take his bullshit anymore. It was after that that I finally realized all of this. You're the only one that can truly love and protect me," he walked closer to Akito, putting a hand on his chest and looking up into his cold, grey eyes. It was Akito who closed the distance between them. Nagisa was expecting a short kiss, but Akito wanted to take his breath away quite literally.

When they broke apart, Nagisa was panting. He was still gasping for air when he heard faint whimpers and cries, but they weren't just any whimpers, they were a dog's whimpers.

"W-What's that noise?" Nagisa tentatively asked, still catching his breath.

"That insufferable dog…" Akito grimaced. "It has been nothing but trouble and it wouldn't obey me. And you know I'm not fond of people let alone things that I can't control…something that I can't control should be dead," there was nothing but malice lacing his voice.

Nagisa nodded his head, his face emotionless. His heart was absolutely breaking on the inside. He wanted to scream out Kota's name, run to his side, anything he could do to save him, but in order for the plan to work, he couldn't. He wasn't ready for the silence that followed. He felt as though his legs were about to give out beneath him so he walked over to the only bed in the room and sat on it. Bombarding Akito with questions when he just got there didn't seem right, but it was now or never and Nagisa needed answers, not to mention something to think about other than Kota.

"Thinking back to that note, I actually don't know how my dad's doing...have you seen him…?"

"I can't tell you that~ Not even your mother knows~ And I want it to stay that way...not like she cares anyway," Akito mused. The air became suffocating to Nagisa; he felt like he was drowning.

Akito climbed into bed next to Nagisa and snaked his arms around his small waist, pulling him closer.

"Alright…" Nagisa whispered, not wanting to press further. He hated every second of this and it already felt as if he'd been in that room for hours.

"I'm glad that you came to your senses~ You'll never be able to escape me and it's a good thing that you came crawling back when you did~ I was about to target your new little bodyguard~ And sooner than you might've thought~"

"I couldn't care less anymore…" Nagisa admitted while staring into Akito's eyes. "This is the way things are meant to be."

At this point, Akito was convinced that Nagisa was all his and under his control once more. He rolled over and climbed on top of Nagisa, letting his hand glide up his chest until it came to rest on Nagisa's small neck. He grasped it and gradually, his hold tightened. All Nagisa thought to do was to keep gazing into Akito's cold, dead eyes.

Akito lowered his head to Nagisa's neck and bit down into his pale flesh. Nagisa winced, squirming underneath him. It was over as soon as it started, much to Nagisa's surprise.

When Akito got off the bed, Nagisa sat up and looked over at his retreating figure.

"Where are you going?"

"To wash up if you don't mind…why don't you stare at the wall until I return?" he walked into the bathroom and shut the door.

Once Nagisa heard the click of the lock, he slowly got up and approached the bedroom door. He heard the shower water start rushing out of the shower head and took that moment to open the door. Aki, who was crouched down in front of the door, shot up and stepped into the room, closing the door behind herself.

"Karma and Asano are outside keeping watch," she whispered to him before embracing him. A familiar blue cloud surrounded them and Nagisa disappeared, leaving a small, blue snake in his place.

Aki looked around and located the bed. As soon as she laid eyes on it, she shuffled over to it and crawled beneath it, all the while still holding Nagisa in her arms.

"How long do you think this will take?" Asano asked Karma in a hushed tone.

"No idea…" he whispered back.

Karma felt as if somebody were watching them and it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He got into a fighting position just in case somebody were to jump out at him. Asano took note of what he was doing and made sure to watch his back.

"You shouldn't be here…." hissed Hiromi as she came walking from behind a tree.

Karma glared at her. "And why not?"

"Because you don't belong here…you're far from being a part of this family…" she gasped. "Could it be that my darling Nagisa finally came to his senses and left you?! If so, trying to get him back is futile," she snickered.

"Quite the opposite, lady~" Karma smirked.

"What…? But…he's in there, right…?"

"And what if he is?"

"You don't understand! I gave birth to a monster! You hear me?! That child had murderous intent like I've never seen before! He's an absolute disgrace! A disgusting creature! If he came back with no intentions of cooperating with Akito…or even me…" she glares at Karma. "This is all your fault!" she screeched before running towards him, ready to pounce.

Akito opened the bathroom door, letting the hot, humid air that built up inside of the room free. Immediately after he stepped foot out of the bathroom, he noticed Nagisa's absence. He didn't think anything of it as he walked back over to his bed.

Cold hands grabbed his ankles and pulled him forward, causing him to fall backwards and hit his head on the wooden floor, resulting in a loud thud. Aki wasted no time in climbing from under the bed and onto Akito, sitting on his legs and pinning his arms to the ground.

"Now, Nagisa!" she shouted.

"Let go of me!" Akito growled as Nagisa slithered up his chest. Aki tightened her grip and Nagisa didn't hesitate. He bit into Akito's neck then slithered off of him. It was quick; Akito became stiff and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Aki jumped off him and scooped Nagisa up in her arms, quickly fleeing the room before anyone could find them there.

"W-Why are you guys all beat up…" Aki asked Karma and Asano as they ran down the dimly lit street.

"We, uh...ran into Nagisa's mother…" Karma breathed out.

"M-My mother?" Nagisa stopped in his tracks, placing his hands on his knees and attempting to catch his breath.

"Yeah…she took off somewhere. Nagisa…she said she was afraid of you," Karma said, looking at how Nagisa's face took on a frown.

"Let's go home…" Asano sighed, grabbing Aki's cold hand and walking into the night. Karma and Nagisa followed soon after.

"Nagi~ What are you doing over there~?" Karma half whined, looking over at Nagisa's hunched over form sitting on the living room floor with a laptop in front of him.

"I have to find out where she went…" he stated, not looking away from what he was doing, his azure eyes scanning every inch of the screen.

Karma rose from his spot on the couch and walked over to Nagisa who didn't bother to look up or acknowledge Karma coming closer at all.

Karma leaned down and grabbed the laptop in one swift movement, closing it. Nagisa blinked, a slight pout playing on his face.

"What the hell, Karma?" he inquired, slightly annoyed.

"Look, I told you we'd find her when we had things more figured out," he held his right hand out for Nagisa to take, the laptop tucked under his left arm securely. "Let's just get through graduation in one piece and plan from there, alright?" he smirked as Nagisa took his hand and stood up, refusing to meet his gaze.

"Sorry…It's just…I didn't come so far just for her to wander around freely like this. She could always come back and who knows what then. She's not well. You know this..." he rambled briefly.

Karma pulled him just a bit closer and pressed a kiss to his forehead, rubbing small circles on the back of Nagisa's hand. He thought back to that night. The night where he had battled Nagisa's crazed mother only for her to flee, the night where Nagisa took the life of his former abusive lover, the night where Nagisa shed so many tears that Karma feared that they'd never stop. It was an endless waterfall, one that him and Karma both were sure to drown in.

His comfort, his reassuring words, and those calloused hands that would wipe away every tear that descended down from his puffy, red eyes were luckily enough to bring Nagisa back to his normal self. It took time and patience, but they got there.

Now, it seemed as though Nagisa was dead set on finding his mother's whereabouts, so much that it became more important than taking care of himself. Boy was he lucky to have Karma by his side. He's the one that always made sure Nagisa did what his obsessive searching prevented him from doing.

"You need to rest every now and again. Preferably in my arms~ With your head resting in the crook of my neck while we watch an old movie~"

Nagisa giggled at the thought. That did sound nice, didn't it? Taking that giggle as some form of the words "I'd like that too," Karma gently pulled him along as he walked to his room. They got settled under the covers and Karma turned on a movie, one that they've both seen before, but one that they never got tired of. There would be the occasional laugh that came from Nagisa and after it had passed, he'd secure the hold he had on Karma's waist, snuggling closer and nestling his head into the crook of his neck while Karma placed a delicate kiss on his head.

"There's my Nagisa~"

The entire sky was pitch black; the stars didn't dare twinkle and the moon rested high in the sky, illuminating the night with its warm glow as two hooded figures ran throughout the streets. They were a skilled and nimble pair, never to work apart. The way they jumped from rooftop to rooftop was agile and quick, but if you had eyes like theirs, it wouldn't be hard to spot the blue and red strands of hair that would get caught in the cool nights breeze, peeking out from under the very hoods they wore to keep their identities concealed.

"Are you sure the target's inside?" Karma asked, speaking quietly into the hidden microphone sewed onto the inside of his suit jacket.

"Positive. Proceed with caution," the woman on the other end responded into his earpiece.

He signaled to Nagisa that the target was inside of the room that they came across. He nodded from his hiding place, tucking his gun away and standing up swiftly. He approached Karma, who had also emerged from his hiding place, and looped his arm around Karma's as he firmly knocked on the door. Any cameras that were on that floor were taken out so they went undetected. They had 20 minutes.

"Enter," the person who resided inside the room called out. Karma slowly turned the knob with his gloved hand and walked in with Nagisa at his side.

They walked into the penthouse, not at all stunned by its modern beauty. With its silky black flat screen tvs, crackling stone fireplace, white marble flooring, and a balcony with a view of the mystic blue ocean, they didn't bat an eye.

"Itsuki, darling, is that-" a woman breathed out, stopping herself as she emerged from one of the many rooms inside the penthouse, a look of absolute shock adorning her face.

Karma chuckled, clearly amused. "That bastard was last week's target~ Ah, you should've heard the way he screamed~"

Hiromi dropped the cigarette that rested in between her fingers and took a step back, not noticing that it fell directly onto the carpet she had placed under one of the many tables she had placed against the wall.

"Hello again mother," Nagisa spoke with malice lacing his voice, his eyes went blank as he reached for the gun he had tucked away in his pants.

"N-Nagisa! Dear…I-It's so wonderful of you to join me after all this time. Now, why don't you stop whatever it is you're doing and come have a drink with me. Look at all I've been able to accomplish with you gone," she said motioning to the space around her. "I know you must've missed me and am dying to stay in such a lovely abode~" she smiled, not noticing the small flames growing from the carpet.

"I'm not dying to stay here, metaphorically speaking nor have I missed you…you'll be dying quite literally though," not giving her the chance to reply, he pointed the gun at her and pulled the trigger twice, both bullets piercing her chest, the second piercing her heart. He thought he'd miss on purpose the first time so that she could experience a little pain before she died and he was happy to think that she did.

Karma eyed Nagisa carefully. He thought about completing him on his kill like he always did, but he had just killed his own mother. No matter how much of a crazed bitch she was, she was still his mother.

"Are you alright…?" he asked instead, the flames on the carpet growing more intense.

Nagisa didn't know how to answer that question. Was he alright? Honestly, he felt like he was becoming a monster. Hero's that he admired back in middle school would've let their mother's live, instead putting them behind bars or something of the sort. That didn't work for Nagisa back then and he doubted it would work again. He also couldn't help the thought of his late sensei's face flashing in his mind. His sensei had been the first person he had ever killed and regrettably so. They were supposed to come close to killing him and drive him mad; the thought of someone always targeting him eating away at his sanity. The day he died, something snapped inside of Nagisa; something that compelled him to kill.

He cupped Karma's cheek with his hand and brought his face down to his level, capturing his lips in a kiss. It lasted a little longer than it should've because when they broke apart, the flames were only inches away from them. Nagisa admired the raging red flower blossoming inside the penthouse before turning on his heels to make a quick exit, not missing how the flower engulfed his mother's body, emitting the smell of burning flesh.

"Let's go," he whispered as he grabbed Karma's hand, their fingers intertwining as they quickly left the penthouse, not daring to look back at the past which haunted them.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed!~